Although the number of children that met the state’s criteria for demonstrating year-over-year growth in math and reading in 2024 varied greatly throughout school districts, the majority of Greater Houston students did.
On STAAR, the state’s main standardized test, between 55 and 75 percent of elementary and middle school pupils in sizable Houston-area districts achieved scores that showed at least a year’s worth of learning gain. While three districts that mostly served students from lower-income families suffered the hardest, Katy ISD students excelled in reading and math.
The high-stakes tests are taken by all Texas children in grades 3 through 8, and they determine the state’s school ratings and provide parents with information about their child’s academic standing.
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The growth metric determines whether a pupil has advanced intellectually by at least one school year by comparing test results from 2023 and 2024. Although some standardized test critics contend that the assessments don’t effectively measure students’ knowledge, schools can utilize the data to determine how effective their instruction is.
The reading results
With 76 percent of its kids meeting the growth threshold on the reading exam, Katy ISD led the major districts in the area. Five other districts achieved growth of 70 percent.
With the exception of Alief, Spring, and Aldine ISDs, the majority of the Houston area’s sizable districts had reading growth ratings that were marginally below the state average.
The math results
Katy also maintained its position as the district with the highest student progress on the math STAAR examinations, with 71 percent, just ahead of Conroe and Klein ISDs and Lamar CISD, which had 66 percent.
Once more, Alief and Spring’s percentage was barely below the 55 percent state average.
How growth has changed
Even in more affluent and high-performing districts like Katy, math growth scores in 2024 showed notable declines from 2023.
In contrast, reading growth improved throughout the region, with some districts outperforming the state average.
Houston ISD had some of the best results in both areas, with an additional 12 percent of its students meeting the growth criteria in reading and another 4 percent meeting the benchmark in math. Although there has been much debate surrounding the state’s takeover of HISD in the middle of 2023 and Superintendent Mike Miles’ reform of the district, the district’s test results increased more than those of other districts in the Houston area during Miles’ first year in office.
What it means
Since the growth metric gauges progress rather than exam scores, it is intended to offer a more fair method of evaluating academic performance.
However, districts in affluent Houston more frequently had higher growth scores than districts in less affluent sections of the region.
What comes next
The National Center for Education Statistics’ release of the Nation’s Report Card on January 29 marks the next significant release of data on reading and math exam results. The test is one of the most scrutinized assessments of student academic achievement and is administered to children nationwide as well as to dozens of targeted school districts, including HISD.
In Texas, the summer of 2025 will see the release of the STAAR scores for the 2024–25 academic year.
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